One problem with the slow pace of the talks is that the Bears are holding off on possible extensions with pro personnel director Rick Spielman and college scouting director Bill Rees.

All three top members of the personnel department have contracts expiring this spring.

Rare event: With the injury to McNown, the Bears only twice this season played an entire game with only one quarterback.

Jim Miller played the whole second Minnesota game while Shane Matthews and McNown were hurt and McNown took every snap in last week's win over Detroit.

The Bears have had a different starting lineup on offense in each of their 15 games.

Sick bay: The team that might have wanted to pull its starters Sunday to avoid injuries turned out not to be the playoff-bound St. Louis Rams but the Bears.

McNown, who missed time earlier this season with a sprained knee, left Sunday's game at halftime with a strained right side.

Right tackle James Williams said he will have surgery after the season on his injured left knee, which was aggravated Sunday when a player rolled into him.

Despite his leg encased in bandages and stabilizers, he dismissed the idea of sitting out the last game.

"If I did that, I would feel like I was abandoning my teammates," Williams said.

"If they're going to stick in there for 16 games, I'm in there 16 games."

Rookie report: The Bears' rookie class made another major contribution when third-round pick Rex Tucker started at right guard in place of Chris Villarrial, who was inactive with a hamstring pull.

Tucker, whose brother Ryan is a Rams tackle, is the ninth member of the Bears' 1999 draft to start at least one game and fifth on offense.

Only Rosevelt Colvin, who plays extensively at defensive end in passing situations, and receiver Sulecio Sanford, moved up last week from the practice squad, have not started.

The Bears also desperately needed rookie cornerback Jerry Azumah when Walt Harris went out in the first quarter with a strained right hamstring.

With Jermaine Jones already on the inactive list, the Bears went the final three quarters with only two cornerbacks.

"All year I've been on deck," Azumah said. "If anything happens, then I'm up. Today it happened, so I had to step up."

Robinson left the game with a right quad contusion and running back Curtis Enis aggravated a strained left shoulder and hyperextended his left elbow.

Marshall's plan: Rams coach Dick Vermeil took Marshall Faulk out of the game early in the third quarter with Faulk 36 yards away from breaking Barry Sanders' all-time single-season yardage record, denying him the chance to set the record at home.

"I would have left him in there if Grant Wistrom had not scored [on an interception]," Vermeil said.

"When Wistrom scored I thought it might be rubbing it in their ... whatever. And I thought it was best not to do that."

Air Bears: Robinson became the Bears record-holder for single-season receiving yards with 93 Sunday to give him 1,316, topping Jeff Graham's 1,301 set in 1995.

The Bears also set a team record by throwing 55 passes, giving them 642 for the season and eclipsing the mark of 595 set in 1997.

Down time: During a timeout in the first half to review a play, Enis sidled over to the Rams' Isaac Bruce and proposed a friendly wager.

"He was saying that he'd bet me a million dollars that Marcus Robinson was better than me," Bruce said.

"And I told him that I'd bet him any day of the week. He really hadn't done much."